Nike doesn't only buy footwear materials and factory capacity. It buys marketing services, general contracting, technology support, staffing, logistics, professional services, and dozens of other categories that have nothing to do with making shoes. Those indirect categories are where a small or diverse-owned business actually has a shot, and Nike runs a dedicated front door for them: its Business Diversity & Inclusion program, usually shortened to BDI.
Registering in the BDI portal is the closest thing Nike offers to "apply to be a supplier." It doesn't win you a contract. It puts your company in front of the buyers who source those categories, so when a relevant project comes up, you're someone they can find. Here's how the path works, what Nike actually requires, and where most people get the process wrong.
What Nike is buying, and from whomNike describes the businesses it wants in this lane plainly: small and diverse-owned companies that can deliver competitively priced goods and services, from marketing agencies and general contractors to firms providing technology support. The work is indirect spend, the operating purchases a company this size makes constantly, not the Tier 1 manufacturing relationships that run through Nike's contract factories.
Nike has publicly cited spending around $1.4 billion with diverse suppliers and working with 120+ diverse suppliers across the U.S. and EMEA. Those numbers tell you two useful things. The program is real and funded. And 120-some active diverse suppliers against billions in indirect spend means the bar to get into the pool is meaningful but the pool is not enormous. This is a competitive on-ramp, not a lottery.
Who qualifies as a diverse supplierNike's definition follows the standard corporate one. A diverse-owned business must be at least 51% owned, operated, managed, and controlled by a diverse person or persons. On top of that, you have to qualify as a Small Business Enterprise (SBE) or Small/Medium-Sized Enterprise (SME) under the U.S. Small Business Administration's size standards, or the equivalent UK, EU, or local guidelines if you're outside the U.S.
The categories Nike recognizes, and the councils it certifies against, are specific:
- Minority-owned in the U.S., through the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) and its regional affiliates. Nike has historically worked closely with the Northwest Mountain MSDC given its Oregon headquarters.
- Women-owned, in partnership with the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) in the U.S. and WEConnect International globally.
- LGBTQIA+-owned, in the U.S. and select countries, through the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC).
- Disability-owned, globally, through Disability:IN.
- Veteran-owned, in the U.S. and Canada, through the National Veteran Business Development Council (NVBDC).
If you already hold a current certification from one of these councils, you have what Nike is looking for. If you don't, that's the first piece of work. Nike states there's no cost to participate in the program itself, but the certifications carry their own fees and processing time, and you'll want the right one in hand before you register. Our corporate supplier diversity directory maps which corporations accept which certifications, so you can see where a single NMSDC or WBENC certification opens doors beyond Nike.
The registration: nike.supplierone.coNike's BDI portal lives at nike.supplierone.co, built on the SupplierOne platform. This is where you create a company profile, attach your certification, and make yourself visible to Nike's sourcing teams. The official program contact is business.DI@Nike.com if you hit a wall.
What to have ready before you start:
- Your certification details. Council name, certificate number, expiration date. Nike states suppliers must acquire and maintain valid certification from its partner councils where applicable, so an expired cert effectively drops you out of consideration.
- A clear capability statement. What you sell, the NAICS or category codes that describe it, your differentiators, and proof you can deliver at Nike's scale. The buyers searching the portal are screening fast. Vague profiles get skipped.
- Past performance with comparable clients. Other enterprise or mid-market accounts you've served in the same category. This is what separates a registered profile from a credible one.
Registration is data entry plus judgment. The data entry is quick. The judgment is in how sharply you position the profile, because that profile is what a Nike buyer reads when deciding whether to reach out.
How Nike actually onboards a vendorHere's the distinction that trips people up. Registering in the BDI portal is visibility. It is not the same as being set up to invoice Nike.
When an opportunity matches your profile, a Nike contact from Procurement or the relevant business group reaches out. There's no public bid board you scroll through. If you're selected for actual work, the real vendor onboarding runs through Nike's procurement systems: new suppliers get an email invite into Aravo to complete vendor registration, and depending on region you may also be enrolled in the Coupa Supplier Portal (CSP) for purchase orders and invoicing. You'll also be expected to comply with Nike's supplier Code of Conduct.
So the sequence is: get certified, register in BDI, get found, get contacted, then get onboarded as a transacting vendor through Aravo and Coupa. Skipping straight to "how do I invoice Nike" misreads the funnel. The BDI registration is what feeds the top of it.
The Academy: Nike's diverse supplier development programNike runs a development program called The Academy for diverse suppliers it wants to grow. It's described as a program to amplify and accelerate the capabilities of diverse suppliers so they grow in their relationship with Nike, built to develop a pipeline of qualified diverse suppliers and drive innovation.
Practically, The Academy is a relationship accelerator for suppliers already in or near Nike's orbit, with access to training and development sessions and a network of mentors and peers. It is not the way you cold-start a relationship with Nike. Think of it as the next rung after you've registered and started doing work, not the entry point. If you get the chance to participate, take it, because graduating signals to internal buyers that you're a developed, lower-risk supplier.
A realistic on-rampSet expectations honestly. Corporate supplier diversity is a long-cycle sales motion. Registering in the portal on a Tuesday does not produce a purchase order by Friday. The companies that win Nike business treat the portal as one channel inside a broader effort:
- Get certified first through the council that matches your ownership. This is non-negotiable and it's the longest lead-time item, so start here.
- Register in the BDI portal at nike.supplierone.co with a sharp, category-specific profile.
- Work the relationships in parallel. Nike sources through NMSDC, WBENC, and the other councils' events and matchmaking. Showing up at council conferences and regional events is how many diverse suppliers actually get on a buyer's radar, certification alone rarely does it.
- Be findable and ready. Keep the profile current, the certification active, and a tight capability statement on hand for the moment a buyer reaches out.
One more thing worth saying directly. Corporate DEI and supplier diversity programs across large U.S. companies have shifted through 2024 into 2026, with some employers renaming, restructuring, or scaling back named initiatives. Before you sink time into any specific program, confirm it's still active and named as you expect on the company's own site. Nike's BDI program has been a long-standing, publicly documented effort, but verify the current portal, certification requirements, and program scope at about.nike.com before you register.
Nike is one corporation. The same certification that gets you into its portal qualifies you for hundreds of corporate supplier diversity programs, and the smart move is to register once and apply broadly. Browse the corporate program directory to see who else accepts your certification, list your business in our supplier directory so corporate buyers can find you, and if you're not certified yet, CertifyAll handles the filing so you're not navigating each council's process alone. For the wider playbook on getting into these programs and turning a registration into a relationship, read how to get into corporate supplier diversity programs.
